By Thomai Dunn

Just Dance is a series of rhythm games developed by Ubisoft. It turns popular music into a series of dance routines that the player(s) is/are tasked to mimic physically.¹ On the surface, it just looks like 1-4 characters (“coaches” in the game) dressed in colorful outfits dancing to Eye of the Tiger or Who Let the Dogs Out?^{2 3}, along with occasionally flashy UI and backgrounds created and programmed with a specific function(s) in mind. Of the main installments, a new one is released every year, and starting with Just Dance 2014, those with a specific year in their title were to be released in the year before (e.g., Just Dance 2015 was released in 2014).⁴ However, there is more to the development process of these games than just code and visual effects. Of its non-digital elements, working on this involves getting people to be physically involved in creating these routines for each chosen song.

Identifying the Just Dance Team

Due to the growing number of people involved in these games/projects, I have decided to refer to them as the “Just Dance Team.” Of those specifically involved in the 3D design of it, it consists of costume designers, stop-motion animators (in more recent installments), and dance choreographers. Not including the geographically diverse array of music artists from whom they received licenses to use their music for the games and collaborating companies whose IP(s) were used in the games (Disney characters, Nickelodeon’s Spongebob Squarepants, etc.), the JD Team is technically an international group, given that its developer, Ubisoft, is headquartered in France and employs the help of its other branches elsewhere in Europe, North America, and Asia. They have been active since some time before 2006, when it was originally a prototype for a minigame of a similar premise for one of the company’s other gaming projects.⁵

Figure 1. A breakdown of specific Ubisoft branches involved in Just Dance’s production. NOTE: There are several others under the company, but they do not have a role in this.

They were not inspired by a sort of art movement. Regarding their style, they first started their work in a live-action format that involved costume designers, dance choreographers, concept artists for said costumes (by assumption, some of the early games, since I have limited information on their behind-the-scenes content), and other creatives, working together on how to properly represent a song they’ve chosen and received the rights to adapt into part of a game.⁶ As of Just Dance 2018 (released in 2017), they began to utilize animation for portraying the coaches, though it wasn’t until Just Dance 2019 (2018) that it became tangible by means of stop-motion and, though partially, around the latter with motion capture; although, since the only tangible part of the latter was the pre-VFX phase where a human dancer was dressed in a mo-cap suit that tracks their movements that are then converted into a moving digitally animated character, I will not cover this extensively later in this presentation.⁷

Fashion – Representing the Song and the Dancer

First to be covered is fashion. This is present throughout all the maps–a term referring to the visual aspects of a song in a Just Dance game, not the physicality like the dances themselves (a “routine”)– where concept artists and fashion designers work together to create a dancer/coach that visually works with the song they’re assigned to. From 2009 to 2011, possibly due to a limited budget with materials, the clothes themselves were generally colored in blue, black, white, red, and/or green (only once for the song Video Killed the Radio Star). The gloves were added around 2010 for JD 2 as an indicator of which hand’s movements from a player will be tracked, but this didn’t apply to every dancer at debut, and during those years, they were limited to red, blue, yellow, and/or white.^{8 9} They do not remain in these colors once the final version comes around, which is what the player(s) will see when booting up the game, where they’re all in vibrant colors, noticeably in gradients and/or a lack of details (lighting/value, texture, etc.). 

Figure 2. Top: The original “final product” costumes to various songs from Just Dance 1-3, pre-VFX. 

Bottom: The costumes post-VFX

From 2012 onwards, starting with JD 4, body paint became “part” of the outfits. The reason they started using it is so that, except for a few songs like How Far I’ll Go and Zero to Hero, the coaches look more relatable to the players (in other words, racially ambiguous), and the same can probably be said for those painted in different colors.¹⁰ At the same time, they began to utilize more colors in their designs (before VFX was added).¹¹

Figure 3. Various songs from Just Dance 4 onwards that used body paint

There were a few songs throughout the Team’s catalog where they appear to have worked around potential issues in creating costumes for coaches who were intended to look a certain way in the final version. For example, Satisfaction had a dancer dressed as a robot whose limbs sort of float as he’s moving; to make this happen, the designer had to attach green patches to his shoulders, elbows, knees, and lower torso, so VFX would make it look like there are “gaps” where they’ve been placed.¹² Two songs, Ghostbusters and Oishii Oishii, each have a coach who does not have any legs because the dancers behind them must where green body suits with the actual costumes on top, then the green legs will be cut off in editing.^{13 14} Ghostbusters and Watch Me (Whip Nae Nae) each have a dancer whose “skin” is green; however, since making them that color would cause VFX to turn them into floating eyes and mouths, they had to instead color them in blue (Ghostbusters) and dark blue (Watch Me)¹⁵.

Figure 4. Various songs where a dancer(s) has at least one constraint to consider in the pre-VFX design process

There is a considerable number of costumes/characters (some with officially confirmed names) that the Team decides to reuse for a future installment in a different song. This is usually done because they like them, and sometimes, they also want to create a story for them. Such a decision evolves into what amounts to lore within the series’ fictional universe, which will not be explained in depth here due to length and a lack of significance to this paper’s main topic.¹⁶ It is unknown how exactly the design process was for revamping the costumes apart from possibly referring to the sketches and pre-VFX phases of the originals, but the final products either look completely different (who’ve been officially confirmed as a reused original character), the same, or very similar to its predecessor with a difference in what they’re wearing (e.g. adding a few accessories or clothing on top of the original or replacing them with different ones). Depending on which character it is, which game they originally appeared in (release year’s important), and the possible changes made to the reused version (if at all), there is a chance that they did not reuse the same costume from X years ago for now (e.g., one from a song in JD 1/2009 for one in JD 2026).¹⁷

Figure 5. Top: Various pre-VFX incarnations of the character The Bride.

Bottom: Post-VFX

To end this section, I would like to acknowledge that the JD Team’s first time working with a visibly disabled coach was for the song “Blinding Lights”by The Weeknd, and so far, it’s the only one of its kind where the costume itself was designed with that in mind. The routine is performed by Angelina Bruno, whose right forearm was amputated. Instead of being given a prosthetic hand as the “glove” of the routine (as in the game and shown on her left), a wearable, conical low-poly arm was 3D-printed for her.¹⁸ This idea can give off the impression that anyone is welcome to dance, regardless of whether a player has a disability or not.

Stop-Motion Animation – Bringing a Song to Life Frame by Frame

A second set of examples showcasing how the Just Dance Team has implemented 3D design was through stop-motion animation. This marked a major moment in the Team’s history where they started collaborating more with outside non-Ubisoft studios for designing the maps to certain songs. So far, there have been exactly 8 times through the series where this technique was used, 7 of which were traditionally in clay. During the time spent working on Just Dance 2019 (released in 2018), they partnered with Inspira to use clay for the first time in portraying both the left dancer and the background for Mi Mi Mi by Serebro; the one on the right is a live-action woman green-screened into the map.¹⁹ They also made Soy Yo by Bomba Estereo, where only the background and its characters are clay–not the dancer herself–and Mr. Blue Sky by Electric Light Orchestra with the dancer, NPCs, and background; the latter is the first song to be 100% animated with this technique.^{20 21} All of these take 7 or so months to make, as they need to first sketch out ideas for the maps, record the choreography, build the puppets and set pieces, and physically manipulate said puppets and set pieces (where applicable) to match the choreography frame by frame and as well as any plans to make the background react or come to life in some way; in addition, they have to make sure everything is consistent in lighting and placement.²²

Figure 6. A breakdown of the animation behind Mi Mi Mi by Serebro

The other time stop motion has been used was with paper, specifically for the song Cure for Me by AURORA in Just Dance 2024. During the production of this map, they collaborated with paper artist Lila Poppins and Eddy Animation to create the map for the “Paper Version” (officially named as such since there’s also a live-action dancer version). This has a very similar process to its predecessors mentioned earlier, except for a difference in the material(s) used on the set and the dancers’ skeletons. This project was confirmed to have been inspired by the Magician tarot card and astrology, and is conveyed using bright colors, shapes, and symbols displayed throughout.^{23 24}

Figure 7. A breakdown of Cure for Me by AURORA

Dance Choreography – Telling a Story Through Movement

I see dance as a form of 3D design, though it’s somewhat unconventional. Yes, it is not like a sculpture, where it’s static, but it is kinetic while still occupying a 3d space, having length, width, and height, and can be seen from all angles. It is also touchable (especially when it comes to duets, trios, or quartets performing a move requiring contact with each other). I made the decision to cover this last due to being an unconventional form of 3D art (depending on the person being asked) and the amount of time required to gather the right visuals needed to present to my class.

Figure 8. Three of the earliest known choreographers to be part of the Just Dance Team

Since the very beginning, they have collaborated with countless choreographers to tell a story through movement, usually in relation to a song. They started very small in JD 1 with just 3: Julia Spiesser, Jeremy Paquet, and Gregoire Spillmann; in addition, Spiesser and Paquet were the only dancers for the game, which meant that they made up the entire roster of 32 songs that differed between female and male solos, respectively.^{25 26 27} They are no longer with the Team as of 2022 (Spiesser), 2012 (Paquet), and 2010 (Spillmann), respectively. However, over time, this portion of the Just Dance Team grew in numbers as they hired more people with each game they made for the series, and the dances got more expressive, and depending on the song, rigorous.²⁹ Due to there being a large number of them, I can’t really give a full list of other choreographers involved throughout the series, except for those involved in the following:

The Team likes to reference the “official choreographies” of the songs they adapt, meaning they take some piece of the dances from the original music videos and put them into a game. Blinding Lights opened the door for them to be more inclusive with their dancers and their performances; this includes Radioactive (wheelchair-bound) and Something I Can Feel (deaf).^{30 31 32}

Figure 9. Radioactive by Imagine Dragons (left) and Something I Can Feel by Mandy Harvey (right)

My Thoughts

Having been a fan of Just Dance since around 2016, I never realized until about two years into playing it that it took much more effort to make than just coding it. Honestly, I thought all the live-action dancers were CGI, but I eventually found out that wasn’t true. As I kept up with their YouTube posts that detailed the behind-the-scenes of their projects, I grew more and more appreciative of the image they were trying to make out of the games as something for everyone to be included in and have fun.

Footnotes

1:  GameSpot, “Just Dance,” GameSpot (GameSpot, November 17, 2009), https://www.gamespot.com/games/just-dance/.

2:  Ubisoft, Eye of the Tiger, November 17, 2009, Live Action + Visual Effects, Fandom, November 17, 2009, https://justdance.fandom.com/wiki/Eye_of_the_Tiger?file=Eye+jd+gameplay.png.

3:  Ubisoft, Who Let the Dogs Out, November 17, 2009, Live Action + Visual Effects, Fandom, November 17, 2009, https://justdance.fandom.com/wiki/Who_Let_the_Dogs_Out%3F?file=Dogsout+jd1+gameplay.png.

4:  Jordandance-dance, “Just Dance (Series),” Just Dance Wiki (Fandom, November 8, 2013), https://justdance.fandom.com/wiki/Just_Dance_(series).

5:  Kenn Leandre, “How Just Dance Conquered the World,” IGN Southeast Asia (IGN Southeast Asia, January 24, 2014), https://sea.ign.com/just-dance-4/66772/feature/how-just-dance-conquered-the-world.

6:  Just Dance (Ubisoft), “Behind the Scenes – the Making of Just Dance 4,” YouTube (Just Dance (Ubisoft), October 23, 2012), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sG7T5pWasnY.

7:  JustGhostBR, “ANIMATED MAPS | EVOLUTION in JUST DANCE (JD18 – JD24),” YouTube (JustGhostBR, November 30, 2023), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zvh3s6KUsoA.

8:  XXTavaresXx, “Just Dance 2,” Just Dance Wiki (Fandom, Inc., February 19, 2012), https://justdance.fandom.com/wiki/Just_Dance_2#Behind_the_Scenes.

9:  Anonymous, “Just Dance 3,” Just Dance Wiki (Fandom, Inc., April 23, 2012), https://justdance.fandom.com/wiki/Just_Dance_3#Behind_the_Scenes.

10:  Just Dance (Ubisoft), “Just Dance 2018 Official Livestream,” YouTube (YouTube, October 20, 2017), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OvwZw1suEhE.

11:  Anonymous, “Just Dance 4,” Fandom (Fandom, Inc., June 26, 2012), https://justdance.fandom.com/wiki/Just_Dance_4#Behind_the_Scenes.

12:  LPgamemusic, “Satisfaction (Isak Original Extended),” Just Dance Wiki (Fandom, Inc., November 29, 2013), https://justdance.fandom.com/wiki/Satisfaction_(Isak_Original_Extended)#Behind_the_Scenes.

13:  Kittygirl7878, “Ghostbusters,” Fandom.com (Fandom, Inc., July 26, 2013), https://justdance.fandom.com/wiki/Ghostbusters#Behind_the_Scenes.

14:  JohnDotto, “Oishii Oishii,” Fandom.com (Fandom, Inc., September 1, 2016), https://justdance.fandom.com/wiki/Oishii_Oishii#Behind_the_Scenes.

15:  Ubisoft, Watch Me (Whip Nae Nae) – Behind the Scenes, August 2, 2016, Live Action + Costumes (unknown Textiles, Fandom, August 2, 2016, https://justdance.fandom.com/wiki/Watch_Me_(Whip/Nae_Nae)?file=WatchmewhipBTS.png#Behind_the_Scenes.

16:  Dina Just Dance (@TheFairyDina), “JUST DANCE 2024 FULL GAME REACTION (New Story Mode + Last Unknown Songs) W/ Matthew Tomkinson,” YouTube (Google, October 27, 2023), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=laGnWrd7kXE.

17:  Jkalkahall, “List of Reused Coaches,” Just Dance Wiki (Fandom, Inc., October 3, 2024), https://justdance.fandom.com/wiki/User_blog:Jkalkahall/List_of_Reused_Coaches.

18:  Ubisoft, “Just Dance 2021: Creative Spotlight | Blinding Lights by the Weeknd | Ubisoft [US],” YouTube, Just Dance (Ubisoft), December 18, 2020, https://youtu.be/pT7NCNyF7ks?list=RDpT7NCNyF7ks.

19:  Just Dance (Ubisoft), “Just Dance 2019: The Making of Mi Mi Mi | Ubisoft [US],” YouTube (Google, October 31, 2018), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cZNHqUJfKiA.

20:  Inspira Stop Motion, “Clip Just Dance 2020- Soy Yo (behind the Scenes),” YouTube (Google, November 2, 2021), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g6rpdsq6GwM.

21:  Inspira Stop Motion, “Just Dance 2022- Mr. Blue Sky (behind the Scenes Full),” YouTube (Google, November 10, 2021), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ie7aoQ4TRc.

22:  Inspira Stop Motion, “Just Dance 2019 – Mi Mi Mi (behind the Scenes Time Lapse),” YouTube (Google, November 12, 2021), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M55QzBuGsJ0.

Confirmed via Inspira in the comment section

 23: Eddy Animation, “AURORA • Cure for Me,” Instagram (blog), March 12, 2024, https://www.instagram.com/reel/C4a-kT8qY4z/.

24:  Stash, “Eddy Signs Stop Motion Paper Director Lila Poppins to Animation Roster,” Stash (blog), December 21, 2023, https://www.stashmedia.tv/eddy-signs-stop-motion-paper-director-lila-poppins-to-animation-roster/.

25:  piltdown_man, Juan Miguel Gamotia, and 一旁冷笑, “Just Dance Credits (Wii, 2009) – MobyGames,” MobyGames (MobyGames, November 1, 2010), https://www.mobygames.com/game/48781/just-dance/credits/wii/.

26:  Anonymous, “Jeremy Paquet – MobyGames,” MobyGames (MobyGames, 2025), https://www.mobygames.com/person/467059/jeremy-paquet/.

27:  Anonymous, “Grégoire Spillmann – Video Game Credits – MobyGames,” MobyGames (MobyGames, 2020), https://www.mobygames.com/person/118318/gregoire-spillmann/credits/sort:date/.

28:  Anonymous, “Julia Spiesser – Video Game Credits – MobyGames,” MobyGames (MobyGames, 2023), https://www.mobygames.com/person/467058/julia-spiesser/credits/.

29:  Anonymous, “Just Dance 2 (Video Game 2010) – Full Cast & Crew – IMDb,” IMDb (IMDb, October 10, 2010), https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1841679/fullcredits/.

30:  CAMERAwMUSTACHE, “Radioactive,” Just Dance Wiki (Fandom, Inc., September 13, 2022), https://justdance.fandom.com/wiki/Radioactive.

31:  Just Dance (Ubisoft), “Something I Can Feel by Mandy Harvey,” X (formerly Twitter) (X Corporation, September 10, 2024), https://x.com/justdancegame/status/1833536005397270537.

32:  FaithfulFiction, “Something I Can Feel,” Fandom.com (Fandom, Inc., September 10, 2024), https://justdance.fandom.com/wiki/Something_I_Can_Feel.

Works Cited

Anonymous. “Grégoire Spillmann – Video Game Credits – MobyGames.” MobyGames. MobyGames, 2020. https://www.mobygames.com/person/118318/gregoire-spillmann/credits/sort:date/.

———. “Jeremy Paquet – MobyGames.” MobyGames. MobyGames, 2025. https://www.mobygames.com/person/467059/jeremy-paquet/.

———. “Julia Spiesser – Video Game Credits – MobyGames.” MobyGames. MobyGames, 2023. https://www.mobygames.com/person/467058/julia-spiesser/credits/.

———. “Just Dance 2 (Video Game 2010) – Full Cast & Crew – IMDb.” IMDb. IMDb, October 10, 2010. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1841679/fullcredits/.

———. “Just Dance 3.” Just Dance Wiki. Fandom, Inc., April 23, 2012. https://justdance.fandom.com/wiki/Just_Dance_3#Behind_the_Scenes.

———. “Just Dance 4.” Fandom. Fandom, Inc., June 26, 2012. https://justdance.fandom.com/wiki/Just_Dance_4#Behind_the_Scenes.

Blugo34. “Just Dance (Video Game).” Just Dance Wiki. Fandom, Inc., February 21, 2014. https://justdance.fandom.com/wiki/Just_Dance_(video_game)#Behind_the_Scenes.

CAMERAwMUSTACHE. “Radioactive.” Just Dance Wiki. Fandom, Inc., September 13, 2022. https://justdance.fandom.com/wiki/Radioactive.

Dina Just Dance (@TheFairyDina). “JUST DANCE 2024 FULL GAME REACTION (New Story Mode + Last Unknown Songs 😱) W/ Matthew Tomkinson.” YouTube. Google, October 27, 2023. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=laGnWrd7kXE.

Eddy Animation. “AURORA • Cure for Me.” Instagram (blog), March 12, 2024. https://www.instagram.com/reel/C4a-kT8qY4z/.

FaithfulFiction. “Something I Can Feel.” Fandom.com. Fandom, Inc., September 10, 2024. https://justdance.fandom.com/wiki/Something_I_Can_Feel.

GameSpot. “Just Dance.” GameSpot. GameSpot, November 17, 2009. https://www.gamespot.com/games/just-dance/.

Inspira Stop Motion. “Clip Just Dance 2020- Soy Yo (behind the Scenes).” YouTube. Google, November 2, 2021. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g6rpdsq6GwM.

———. “Just Dance 2019 – Mi Mi Mi (behind the Scenes Time Lapse).” YouTube. Google, November 12, 2021. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M55QzBuGsJ0.

———. “Just Dance 2022- Mr. Blue Sky (behind the Scenes Full).” YouTube. Google, November 10, 2021. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ie7aoQ4TRc.

Jkalkahall. “List of Reused Coaches.” Just Dance Wiki. Fandom, Inc., October 3, 2024. https://justdance.fandom.com/wiki/User_blog:Jkalkahall/List_of_Reused_Coaches.

JohnDotto. “Oishii Oishii.” Fandom.com. Fandom, Inc., September 1, 2016. https://justdance.fandom.com/wiki/Oishii_Oishii#Behind_the_Scenes.

Jordandance-dance. “Just Dance (Series).” Just Dance Wiki. Fandom, November 8, 2013. https://justdance.fandom.com/wiki/Just_Dance_(series).

Just Dance (Ubisoft). “Behind the Scenes – the Making of Just Dance 4.” YouTube. YouTube, October 23, 2012. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sG7T5pWasnY.

———. “Just Dance 2018 Official Livestream.” YouTube. YouTube, October 20, 2017. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OvwZw1suEhE.

———. “Just Dance 2019: The Making of Mi Mi Mi | Ubisoft [US].” YouTube. Google, October 31, 2018. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cZNHqUJfKiA.

———. “Something I Can Feel by Mandy Harvey.” X (formerly Twitter). X Corporation, September 10, 2024. https://x.com/justdancegame/status/1833536005397270537.

JustDancer30. “Alternate Routines.” Edited by CAMERAwMUSTACHE. Just Dance Wiki. Fandom, Inc., October 26, 2013. https://justdance.fandom.com/wiki/Alternate_Routines.

JustGhostBR. “ANIMATED MAPS | EVOLUTION in JUST DANCE (JD18 – JD24).” YouTube. JustGhostBR, November 30, 2023. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zvh3s6KUsoA.

Kittygirl7878. “Ghostbusters.” Fandom.com. Fandom, Inc., July 26, 2013. https://justdance.fandom.com/wiki/Ghostbusters#Behind_the_Scenes.

Leandre, Kenn. “How Just Dance Conquered the World.” IGN Southeast Asia. IGN Southeast Asia, January 24, 2014. https://sea.ign.com/just-dance-4/66772/feature/how-just-dance-conquered-the-world.

LPgamemusic. “Satisfaction (Isak Original Extended).” Just Dance Wiki. Fandom, Inc., November 29, 2013. https://justdance.fandom.com/wiki/Satisfaction_(Isak_Original_Extended)#Behind_the_Scenes.

PandaB31. “Jopping/Extreme Version.” Just Dance Wiki. Fandom, Inc., October 13, 2021. https://justdance.fandom.com/wiki/Jopping/Extreme_Version.

piltdown_man, Juan Miguel Gamotia, and 一旁冷笑. “Just Dance Credits (Wii, 2009) – MobyGames.” MobyGames. MobyGames, November 1, 2010. https://www.mobygames.com/game/48781/just-dance/credits/wii/.

Stash. “Eddy Signs Stop Motion Paper Director Lila Poppins to Animation Roster.” Stash (blog), December 21, 2023. https://www.stashmedia.tv/eddy-signs-stop-motion-paper-director-lila-poppins-to-animation-roster/.

Ubisoft. Eye of the Tiger. November 17, 2009. Live Action + Visual Effects. Fandom. https://justdance.fandom.com/wiki/Eye_of_the_Tiger?file=Eye+jd+gameplay.png.

———. “Just Dance 2021: Creative Spotlight | Blinding Lights by the Weeknd | Ubisoft [US].” YouTube. Just Dance (Ubisoft), December 18, 2020. https://youtu.be/pT7NCNyF7ks?list=RDpT7NCNyF7ks.

———. Watch Me (Whip Nae Nae) – behind the Scenes. August 2, 2016. Live Action + Costumes (unknown Textiles. Fandom. https://justdance.fandom.com/wiki/Watch_Me_(Whip/Nae_Nae)?file=WatchmewhipBTS.png#Behind_the_Scenes.

———. Who Let the Dogs Out. November 17, 2009. Live Action + Visual Effects. Fandom. https://justdance.fandom.com/wiki/Who_Let_the_Dogs_Out%3F?file=Dogsout+jd1+gameplay.png.

XXTavaresXx. “Just Dance 2.” Just Dance Wiki. Fandom, Inc., February 19, 2012. https://justdance.fandom.com/wiki/Just_Dance_2#Behind_the_Scenes.

Thomai Dunn was born in 2006 in Bakersfield, California. In 2026, she’ll graduate with a Studio Arts AAT along with 3 other degrees and 1 certificate. She was included in the student art galleries of Emerson Middle School, Bakersfield High School, and Bakersfield College. She was a member of the Bakersfield High School chapters of the National Honor Society and the California Scholarship Federation, Class of 2024. Her main goal is to graduate and pursue a career with a BA in animation from CSU Fresno, but she is also open to anything else that’ll pique her interest, whether it pertains to art.